Acalypha boehmerioides
Miq.
Kar-pidik, Hongohongo
Conveyor Belt
Ingrid P. Lin
What to Eat
Edible parts: Leaves, Vegetable
The leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable.
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It commonly grows as a weed in cultivated areas. It can grow in part shade. It occurs in lowland areas in the tropics and subtropics.
Asia, Fiji, Indonesia, Malaysia, Niue, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Samoa, SE Asia, Sudan, Tonga,
How to Identify
A shrub or small tree. It grows 5 m tall. There are prickles along the stem. The leaves are twice divided and there are 8-18 pairs of pinnae. There are up to 50 pairs of pinnules on each pinnae. The flowers are yellow. They are in large clusters at the ends of branches. The pods are flattened.
Other Information
It is not known if it is used for food in Papua New Guinea.
Notes
There are over 450 Acalypha species. They are tropical. There are 225 in tropical America.
Names & Synonyms
References (9)
- Bircher, A. G. & Bircher, W. H., 2000, Encyclopedia of Fruit Trees and Edible Flowering Plants in Egypt and the Subtropics. AUC Press. p 5
- French, B., 1986, Food Plants of Papua New Guinea, Asia Pacific Science Foundation p 305 (Acalypha sp.)
- Henty, E.E., & Pritchard, G.S., 1973, Weeds of New Guinea and their control. Botany Bulletin No 7, Division of Botany, Lae, PNG. p 99
- Martin, F.W. & Ruberte, R.M., 1979, Edible Leaves of the Tropics. Antillian College Press, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. p 191
- Peekel, P.G., 1984, (Translation E.E.Henty), Flora of the Bismarck Archipelago for Naturalists, Division of Botany, Lae, PNG. p 309, 310
- Powell, J.M., Ethnobotany. In Paijmans, K., 1976, New Guinea Vegetation. Australian National University Press. p 108 (Acalypha sp.)
- Siemonsma, J. S. & Kasem Piluek, eds. 1993. Vegetables. In: Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 8:311. (As Acalypha lanceolata)
- Terra, G.J.A., 1973, Tropical Vegetables. Communication 54e Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam, p 18
- Yuncker, T.G., 1959, Plants of Tonga, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Hawaii, Bulletin 220. p 163
